Indies
Americannoun
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(used with a plural verb) the Indies. West Indies.
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(used with a plural verb) East Indies.
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(used with a singular verb) a region in and near southern and southeastern Asia; India, Indochina, and the East Indies.
noun
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the territories of S and SE Asia included in the East Indies, India, and Indochina
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See East Indies
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See West Indies
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The U.S. formally recognized Danish sovereignty in 1916 as a condition for its purchase of the Danish West Indies.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026
In one memorable passage on the French West Indies, he writes:
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
Plantation slavery was perfected in the West Indies, notably on the sugar islands of British Barbados and present-day Haiti, where the system proved immensely profitable.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026
The 76-year-old was the first man to reach 10,000 runs in Test cricket and was part of the India team that famously shocked West Indies in the 1983 World Cup final.
From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026
It rains very little in the Dutch West Indies unless there is a hurricane, and water from the few wells has a heavy salt content.
From "The Cay" by Theodore Taylor
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
